Advocates worry Bill 5 strips vital protection from polar bears

Environmental advocates are warning Ontario’s Bill 5 could jeopardize the future of the province’s polar bears by stripping away critical protections for the threatened species.

Ontario Nature says Bill 5 — which repeals Ontario’s Endangered Species Act and weakens habitat protections — poses “significant risks” to the survival of polar bears in the province.

The group’s report comes as part of a 90-day national consultation on the federal Management Plan for Polar Bear in Canada. It highlights how Ontario’s failure to meet climate targets, coupled with the loss of legislative safeguards could accelerate the decline of the species.

“Climate change models estimate that polar bears will be extinct in Ontario within the next 45 years,” Ontario Nature said, in a statement. “The loss of sea